Parties Portable has completed more than 35 (THIRTY FIVE) years of entertaining the public. There were no mobile DJ services in the metroplex in 1970 when Lico Reyes founded the company under the name Disco Supreme. As "disco" became more popular, the name of the company became Disco De-Lite.

The concept of a "portable disc jockey" was so unheard of, that one morning KVIL's Ron Chapman devoted a segment of his morning program to the idea, referring to an article that he'd seen about Lico and Disco De-Lite in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

After "disco" faded out, Lico changed the name to Parties Portable in 1980. For more than a quarter of a century, Parties Portable has ensured the success of thousands of functions. You can count on our experience and professionalism to make YOUR party a big hit!

The number of Karaoke songs in English is about 10,000, the number in Spanish is about 2,000, and Hebrew, and Irish, and Vietnamese, and Greek, and Chinese and Japanese is about 24 each.

We have performed: 1. From "La Costa Resort" in San Diego California to “Cinco De Mayo” in Shreveport, Lousiana.

2. From “El Camino Real” in Mexico City to "The International Bill Fish - Fishing Tournament" at “Treasure Key” in Abaco - The Bahamas.

EXTRAS: PLUS 1: Karaoke may also be substituted for some extras in party packages. PLUS 2: Lico Reyes aka "Father Vito" or "A-La-Vez" etc. available in the metroplex for an hour appearance at a special reduced rate of $150.00 with any of the smaller packages or at a special function.

:)

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SOP & Special Notes____________________

There is a 3-hour minimum for parties. I - Bookings out of the Dallas/Fort Worth/Denton area require 50¢ per mile charge.II - Set up requiring more than an hour in advance will cost extra. III - Prices for packages are for average size party. IV - Larger groups or facilities will be negotiated accordingly. V - Substitution of lights or effects allowed by request or need. VI - Special engagements will receive special consideration. VII - Discounts available for Educational Groups, Charities, and Regular Clients. VIII - In the event of a discounted rate, the client will provide two strong volunteers. IX - Discounts are not cumulative and do not apply on a holiday week. X - All prices subject to change without notice, except on pre-written contracts. XI - Deposit is required in advance to confirm engagement. XII - Balance is due at beginning of function.

===> American Federation of Musicians, ===> Chamber of Commerce, ===> Texas Film Commission, ===> Texas Music Industry, State of Texas __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

ARLINGTON -- This New Year's Eve, as many celebrate the date rolling over to 2000, Lico Reyes will be celebrating his own milestone: 30 years in the party business.

Reyes has taken his mobile DJ business, Parties Portable, to thousands of parties, country clubs and nightclubs in the Metroplex since his professional debut Dec. 31, 1969.

The roots of his business go back about six years before that, to his days as a teen-ager in El Paso, living behind the KELP radio station.

Reyes amassed a record collection by rummaging through the dumpster behind the station, digging out Roy Orbison, Gene Pitney, Frankie Vali and Little Anthony records.

"But never an Elvis record," he says regretfully. He was planning to become a priest, so he hit on the idea of taking his record collection and stereo to parties as a way to talk to girls while maintaining a respectable distance.

Reyes changed his mind about going into the priesthood and entered the University of Texas at Arlington to study engineering. But he continued to bring his stereo and records to parties. A friend persuaded him to upgrade his equipment and to charge a fee for his service. It was, he says, the birth of a new career when he realized that he enjoyed being with people from all walks of life.

Reyes says he was the first mobile DJ in the country, a claim that's difficult to prove one way or the other, says John Roberts, president of the American Disc Jockey Association in White Plains, Md.

"I don't think we'll ever pinpoint who was the first," Robert says, "But if he's been around since the '60s, he's definitely a granddaddy."

Roberts, who teaches a 60-hour training course for mobile disc jockeys, says the profession was started by radio station disc jockeys who appeared at sock hops to play records and promote their stations. Eventually, mobile DJ became a profession title in itself.

In the 1970s, Reyes formed Disco De-Lite, which at its peak employed 21 DJs, booked every weekend. But he says he had problems with employees and, in 1983, closed the business.

By that time, the public was growing tired of anything to do with disco, Roberts says. "In the mid-'80s, the word disco became poison," he says.

Reyes pared his staff down to a handful of employees and opened a new business under the name Parties Portable.

Although some people say that disco has made something of a comeback, increasing the demand for mobile DJs, competition has also increased, with DJs "a dime a dozen," Reyes says.

In addition to DJ work, Reyes does interpreting and small television and film acting jobs.

Roberts says there are about 70,000 mobile DJs in the country, although only about 20 percent work full time. Still, he says, he considers it a viable business.

"It's almost recession-proof," he said, "because even when times are hard, people still like to party."

An average DJ fee is about $200 an hour, with experienced DJs charging up to $800 an hour.

This New Year's Eve, Lico Reyes, who runs Parties Portable will mark his 30th year anniversary as a mobile DJ. He has taken his busines to thousands of parties, country clubs and nightclubs in the Metroplex since his professional debut Dec. 31, 1969.

Reyes performs as an Elvis, a Michael Jackson or a Groucho Marx look-alike, and he acts as an agent for more than 100 other celebrity look-alikes in the state including 10 Elvises, two Marilyn Monroes, one Selena, one Bill Clinton, an Al Gore, a Mr. Spock and a Ricky Martin. Their fees range from $150 to $600 an hour.

Over the years, Reyes says, he has learned what works and what doesn't.

"A good DJ can swing the mood of the party," he says. He says that one of the biggest mistakes a client can make is to give a DJ a list of songs to play and the exact order in which to play them. Such a list, he says, can be the death of a party.

"The person making the list probably hasn't considered the ratio of slow to fast songs," Roberts says. "They also probably haven't taken into consideration the age range of the guests."

And they will often pick songs too obscure to be enjoyed by the crowd. The professionals say that the old standbys make the best party songs.

"If you give me a list full of songs that I don't recognize, then I'm going to question your list," Roberts says.

A list of the 200 most popular party songs published annually by `Mobile Beat Magazine' "knocks off and adds only about 10 or 15 songs every year," he says.

Of all the parties Reyes has done, his favorite is the annual Christmas Day party he has held for the poor for 12 years. This year's party will be Dec. 25 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at St. Matthew Catholic Church, 2021 New York Ave. in Arlington.

It combines his love of DJ'ing with his desire to serve the community, says Reyes, who has run for Arlington City Council and mayor.

Reyes provides the music and entertainment, usually dressed in costume. He uses his music to keep the party up.

"They are the client, just like the country club," he says. Cuqui Otterbine, who has been helping him for the past 10 years, says it's rare to find events for the homeless on Christmas Day.

"There are a lot of things the day before and the day after but not on Christmas," Otterbine says.

Anyone who has no place to go on Christmas is invited. Volunteers will drive people from Mission Arlington, the Arlington Night Shelter and the Salvation Army to the party and serve them a hot meal, provide gifts for children and distribute clothes.

Tillie Burgin, director of Mission Arlington, says: "Every year we take our shelter folks over there. They have lunch and have a good time."

Otterbine says there are usually about 300 guests. "It's chaotic, but it's a nice chaotic," Otterbine says. "We see a lot of happy faces."